Hold On For Dear Love (Sequel to WILD)

Harry’s POV

I can't sleep. Every time I close my eyes Emily's broken face flashes appears and the guilt rises up once again. I keep replaying everything that happened in my mind over and over again seeing what I should have done. If I had just listened to her instead of getting angry, then I'd still be with her. We'd be lying on the couch in each other's arms without saying a single word. I'd be leaving little kissing her all over her face because I knew she loved it. Then I see the empty place beside me and everything falls apart again. I let out a deep sigh and shifted so I was facing the window on my side. There was only one person who could make me feel better, and she was on the other side of the ocean.

Emily’s POV

"Thank you for being such a great audience! Goodnight!" I ran off the stage with the rest of the band, adrenaline still running through our veins.

For short while everything was okay and I was just a twenty year old girl having fun doing what she loved. But then the memories and the pain all came flooding back to me, reminding me that I lived in this harsh reality where not every story has a fairy tale ending. I felt myself about to break, but I managed to hold it in until I was alone in my hotel room. My body moved automatically as I got ready for bed. Showered and changed, I climbed under the sheets and stared blankly at the window, wondering what was going on back in London. If he missed me at all...Like I missed him…

Harry's POV

Hours of silence seemed to pass until there was a soft knock on my bedroom door before it opened. I peeked back to find all of the boys standing there. I turned back to facing the wall, not wanting to talk to either of them. I shut my phone off for a reason...To be left alone.

"Go away" I said.

"No. You need to talk to someone...or get out of the house" Louis said.

"I don't want to talk. I just want to be left alone"

"Harry, we've left you alone for months! It's time you get up and do something about this!" Zayn argued.

I shot up in my bed and glared at them.

"What!? What am I supposed to do!? Do you know how to turn back time!? Cause I sure as hell don't!"

"Come with us to New York. Talk to Emily" Louis said.

"There's no point. She's never going to forgive me"

"Yes, she will. She loves you"

"Well she shouldn't! She doesn't deserve to be treated like I treated her!! She deserves someone who will never hurt her in any way and who will keep their promises. Someone who isn't me"

"Harry, that's not true! God dammit. Why do you two have to be so stubborn! She wants to forgive you, she just doesn't know it yet. You have to remind her of all those little things you do for her to make her happy and why she fell in love with you in the first place" Liam said.

I stared at him for a long moment taking in everything that he had just told me. Do I take that leap of faith and hope for the best? What if she said no? There was no way that I would be able to handle that rejection twice. Then again it would give me some closure on the whole situation. But how could I possibly apologize for this? I thought back to what Liam said and it just clicked. I jumped out of the bed, grabbed Liam's face, and planted a big wet kiss on his cheek.

"Liam. You're a genius" I said before running out of the room.

I ran downstairs, passing my mum on the way, and rushed to the computer desk to find paper and a pencil. Once I gathered it I started thinking of lyrics and wrote them down. The boys crowded around me to figure out what I was doing.

"What are you writing?" Louis asked.

"A song for Emily. Liam, I need you to call Simon for me and tell him to meet us at my place in London. We're going to need his help"

"Alright! We got our Harry back!" Louis exclaimed as he gave me a hug.

I ignored him, focusing only on what I was writing. An idea was ringing through my head that I would need Simon’s help with. If I was going to pull this off, then it was going to be a lot of work....hopefully it'll all be worth it.

Emily's POV

I sat on the couch eating my third bowl chocolate ice cream as I watched movies. It would probably make me gain a few pounds, but I didn't care. As long as it made me feel better, which it did. I rarely go out of the hotel room, but everyone keeps trying to convince me to go out with them.

I gave in once and never again will I do the same. Last weekend they took me to an indoor mini golf place, but it didn't last very long because it brought back memories...

*FLASHBACK*

I stood with my arms crossed as Harry expertly putted the red ball, causing him to get yet another hole in one. He looked up at my annoyed face and grinned.

"I hate you" I told him, making him chuckle.

"I love you, too" he sang before pecking my cheek.

"I suck at this. Why did you bring me here?"

"You don't suck. You just need a little practice. Come here, I'll let you in on a little secret of mine"

He pulled me over to the start and placed my purple ball at my feet. After leaning his putter against the wall he walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. I bit my lip as his hands moved up my waist to my shoulders, then down my arms before settling over my hands on the putter handle.

"Alright, you want to put your left hand above your right and hook your pinkies together like this"

He showed me his, then helped me place mine correctly. I smiled.

"This is the only reason you brought me here isn't it" I said.

"Well, it's not the only reason, but it's definitely the main one" he replied with a cheeky smile.

"Now, you want to keep your hips nice and loose when you swing"

"Oh, like this?" I shook my hips slightly, purposefully pressing my bum against the front of his pants. I felt his body tense before a soft moan escape his lips.

"Careful, you don't want to tempt me while there are children around" His husky voice whispered into my ear.

I looked up to make sure the family with three kids that were in the building with us didn't see anything. Thankfully they were around the corner at a hole further up.

"Now, as I was saying before you distracted me; when you do the back swing take a deep breath, then as you swing let it out slowly. It'll help you follow through smoothly. Here, let's take a practice swing so you know what I mean. Take a deep breath"

As we did this he moved the putter back so it was now at an angle.

"Now slowly let it out"

I did as he told me and we slowly swung the putter. I took note of how smooth the swing was and looked back at Harry.

"Ok, I think I got it"

"Alright"

He moved back while I took a step forwards to my ball. I lined the putter with the ball, then took a deep breath as I brought the putter back a few inches before finally letting it out and taking a swing. The purple ball rolled down the lane before falling into the hole at the end.

"I did it!! I did it!!" I turned and threw my arms around Harry's neck before pressing my lips to his. He smiled into the kiss.

"And there's the other reason I brought you" he said.

"Harry, you can kiss me anytime you want. You don't need a game for that"

"Thank god for that"

He leaned in to kiss me again, but I slipped out of his arms leaving him standing there alone. He pouted and I grinned.

"Now that I know the secret of mini golf let's throw out a little wager. If you win I'll give you a kiss. If I win you take me to get ice cream"

"Deal"

*END FLASHBACK*

I ended up winning the game, but gave him a kiss anyway. Thinking about that made me realize how much I missed him. I missed the feeling of his hand in mine, his soft lips pressed against my own, and the way his hair felt as I ran my fingers through it. Tears started to form in my eyes for the hundredth time since morning and I just curled into a ball and let them stream down my face. I would never be okay...Not without him...

*Two weeks later*

Harry's POV

I stood backstage watching her perform from a monitor. She looked absolutely amazing. The way she dressed. The way she sang. How she danced. Everything about her was perfect, and it brought on a whole lot of nerves.

My palms became sweaty as I fidgeted nervously where I stood. I don't think I have ever been this nervous in my entire life. The X-Factor, our first live performance, and our first interviews were nothing compared to this. What if she didn't take me back? What if I lost her forever?

"Harry?" I turned around to see Liam standing there looking at me. He put his hand on my shoulder. "You alright mate?"

"...Maybe this was a bad idea" I said quietly.

"Why do you think that?"

"What if she doesn't forgive me? Look at her, Liam. She looks so happy, and I'm about to go out there and bring all this pain back to her. Maybe she is better off without me..." I felt his hand connect with the back of my head causing me to let out a yelp.

"Ow! What was that for!?"

"For being an idiot! Do you not see that she's faking? You of all people should be able to notice that! She loves you and she wants you back. Look at her, Harry. Really look"

I looked back at the screen and found that he was right. She may have a smile on her face, but it was definitely forced. She danced, but I could tell she wasn't into it.
Seeing her like that made me feel even worse, yet at the same time it gave me a glimmer of hope. I turned back to Liam and nodded.

"Everything ready?"

"Yes. We go on when she's done with this next song. You should go get ready"

I took a deep breath and nodded.

"Let's do this"

As we waited for everything to get set up I walked over to the side stage to watch Emily as she announced her next song.

"Thank you all so much! Are you having a good time!?" She asked the audience.

They screamed in response which caused her to smile.

"Good. Now this next song is one that isn't on the album, because I just wrote it. I feel like I need to share it with all of you because it's not like my other songs. It talks about the pain of losing someone you love, and you pretend that everything is okay...but it's not. I hope you like it"

I watched as she walked over to a piano and sat down to play it. She took a deep breath and began to play.

"I've been staring at the ceiling
Watching the fans flow around, round and round
'Cause I can't hear my breathing
The words we said are still so loud, loud, loud"

I listened to her sing with so much emotion behind her voice that it broke my heart just by listening to her. Then I focused on the words and really felt how much pain she was going through. I began to second guess my decision about coming here. Was I really about to go out there and hurt her even more?

Her voice started to crack slightly as she belted the words. My chest tightened as I felt my own tears coming on. I shook my head and walked away from the stage.

"Harry? Where are you going?" Niall asked.

"I can't do this. I can't hurt her again"

I ran down the hallway towards the exit. The moment my hands hit the door I stopped. I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I knew that no matter what I chose, I could still get hurt and the thought terrified me. I won't be able to handle losing Emily again...but going on without her is worse. I let out a yell of frustration and hit the door before sitting down against it. Why does this have to be so damn hard?

Emily’s POV

The second after the last note of the song ended I just broke down. Thankfully the lights director expected this to happen and was ready to shut off the spotlights when I finished. That gave me just enough time to quickly compose myself enough to say my thanks to the crowd before rushing off the stage to where Sara was waiting for me with open arms. I ran into them and let it all out.

"I miss him so much" I sobbed.

"I know, sweetie. I know"

Notes